The present invention relates generally to inkjet print cartridges, to inkjet printers utilizing such inkjet print cartridges, and more particularly, relates to features for keying between the cartridge and printer.
The general construction and operation of an ink-jet print cartridge is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,771,295, entitled xe2x80x9cThermal Ink Jet Pen Body Construction Having Improved Ink Storage and Feed Capacity,xe2x80x9d by Baker, et al., issued Sep. 13, 1988.
The general design and construction of an inkjet printer with a carriage that retains and aligns ink-jet print cartridges in a printer and scans these print cartridges through print zones is well known. Examples of the patents that have issued in this field of technology include: U.S. Pat. No. 4,755,836, entitled xe2x80x9cPrinthead Cartridge and Carriage Assembly,xe2x80x9d by Ta, et al., issued Jul. 5, 1988; U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,026, entitled xe2x80x9cInkjet Printer with Printhead Carriage Alignment Mechanism,xe2x80x9d by Rasmussen, et al., issued Oct. 3, 1989; U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,018, entitled xe2x80x9cPrinthead-Carriage Alignment and Electrical Interconnect Lock-in Mechanism,xe2x80x9d by Pinkerpell, issued Mar. 6, 1990; U.S. Pat. No. 5,392,063, entitled xe2x80x9cSpring Cartridge Clamp for Inkjet Printer Carriage,xe2x80x9d by Rhoads, issued Feb. 21, 1995, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,706,097, by Harmon, entitled, xe2x80x9cNear-linear Spring Connect Structure for Flexible Interconnect Circuits,xe2x80x9d dated Nov. 10, 1987.
Ink-jet print cartridges generally include keying features which mate with corresponding features on the print carriage. Because of the keying features, only properly keyed cartridges may be utilized in a particular printer, or a printer may identify a particular ink jet cartridge by its keying features. Inkjet printers are configured and programmed to use particular print cartridges in order to print properly. Black printing of text, printing of low resolution color images and text, and printing of high resolution photographs and images may all use different print cartridges. Accordingly, the different print cartridges for use in a particular printer may utilize and present different keying features for engagement with the printer, allowing identification of the print cartridge.
Further, print cartridges that are not properly configured for a particular printer may cause unsatisfactory printing if used in a printer not intended or designed to use those particular cartridges. Thus, it is important both from a standpoint of proper printer operation for various printing jobs, and from the standpoint of customer satisfaction with the performance of an inkjet printer that only appropriate print cartridges be used.
Prior ink-jet printers, and prior ink-jet print cartridges have been designed generally so that the print cartridge is loaded and unloaded into and from the carriages of these printers either by relatively moving the cartridge vertically, or by moving the cartridge substantially vertically along with a steep, inclined, arcuate motion. The arcuate motion generally tips the print cartridge into latching engagement with a latching spring. An alternative arrangement utilized a latching lever that the user must pivot after insertion of the print cartridge in order to latch the print cartridge into operative position.
However, conventional inkjet printers and their cartridges either had no keying to provide only for properly configured cartridges to be used in a particular printer, or had a keying scheme that provided for only a single direction of engagement between keying features on the cartridge and a key engagement member or feature on the printer carriage. Thus, this dearth of keying alternatives limited the design flexibility that was available to designers of inkjet printers, and of cartridges for these printers.
Briefly and in general terms, an ink-jet print cartridge, and ink-jet printer method and apparatus according to embodiments of the invention includes a generally rectangular prismatic print cartridge body, with the body having at least a two dimensional array, and possibly a three dimensional array, of keying features arrayed on the body at a particular location. The keying features may be binary or have a greater than binary degree of freedom for identification. By xe2x80x9cbinaryxe2x80x9d is meant that at each designated location of the array where a keying feature may appear, a keying feature or xe2x80x9clugxe2x80x9d may be present or absent. The presence of a keying lug may be considered to be a xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d value at that location, while the absence of a keying feature lug at the particular location may be considered a xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d binary value at that location. If the keying features have greater than a binary degree of freedom, then they may be absent, or present at a particular location of the array, and if present, may have one of several different heights. Each height of a particular keying feature is a distinct key value.
Further, the array of keying features may preferably be configured such that a key engagement member or feature carried by a carriage of an inkjet printer may approach and engage with the keying features from one or more of an xe2x80x9cXxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cYxe2x80x9d, or xe2x80x9cZxe2x80x9d direction. Depending on the positions of particular keying features in a particular array (i.e., meaning, for example, the locations of the xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d values in the selected locations of an array), then keying features of the carriage may approach and engage with the keying lugs of the cartridge in two or all three of the xe2x80x9cXxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cYxe2x80x9d, and xe2x80x9cZxe2x80x9d directions.
This enhanced flexibility in keying a printer carriage to print cartridges that are to be received into that printer and carriage provides a designer of inkjet printers with a wide variety of convenient arrangements for keying a cartridge and carriage so that only appropriate cartridges are utilized in a particular printer, and the performance of the printer, and customer satisfaction with the printer are better assured.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of selected preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the principles of the invention by way of example. Throughout the accompanying drawing Figures, like reference numerals indicate either the same feature, or features which are analogous in structure or function.